For a good reason posts have been lacking here recently but with a little luck that will change after Christmas.
The reason for this hiatus?
We recently bought a new house and chasing estate agents (why do they never fail to disappoint!) and then managing the renovation work has taken a lot more time than expected. Make that a LOT more time. My model railways sadly had to take a take a back seat.
Hence why there haven’t been many updates here for the last couple of months.
As I write this just before Christmas there’s still a huge amount of work to be done on the house but we can finally see light at the end of tunnel and I can start to plan how and where my railways will fit into our new abode.
But….
However, there’s a but.
Isn’t there always!
While the new house will have more space and give me much needed room for my layouts, none of the existing layouts will be moved intact.
None of my previously layouts were built with portability in mind as we never expected to move. Buying and moving wasn’t something we planned for – it only came about thanks to an inheritance.
As a result my Wimbledon themed layout will be ripped asunder and my narrow gauge Cornish railway will be cut up for the move. I’ll be holding a minutes silence for them in due course 🙂
Tragic but it does at least mean that I can correct some annoying flaws that layouts have when I rebuild them.
My modular Great South Railway and Hobbit layout-in-a box will be coming with me as they at least are small and by their nature easily movable.
Dwelling 2.0
As mentioned above, the loft in Dwelling 2.0 is being boarded to provide space and comfort but the rafters will remain in place.
This is intentional as it’ll enable me to run boards over them for one layout. I’m hoping the base and core track work of my Cornwall railway can be moved and its just the scenery, backscene and fiddle yard I have too rework and if so this will live in another section of the loft.
Eventually, this will be a new office / den.
Along with the loft, we’re also converting one of the bedrooms to go to a den/man cave where I can work on my modelling and small layouts such as the modules in the Great Southern project and my Hobbit layout in a box.
After Christmas, the challenge of packing everything up and relocating begins. That’s when the fun really begins. Wish me luck!
Andy is a lifelong modeler, writer, and founder of modelrailwayengineer.com. He has been building model railways, dioramas, and miniatures for over 20 years. His passion for model making and railways began when he was a child, building his first layout at the age of seven.
Andy’s particular passion is making scenery and structures in 4mm scale, which he sells commercially. He is particularly interested in modelling the railways of South West England during the late Victorian/early Edwardian era, although he also enjoys making sci-fi and fantasy figures and dioramas. His website has won several awards, and he is a member of MERG (Model Railway Electronics Group) and the 009 Society.
When not making models, Andy lives in Surrey with his wife and teenage son. Other interests include history, science fiction, photography, and programming. Read more about Andy.
Good luck with everything and hope it all goes smoothly for you. Similar case for me as regards planning as I was intending to redesign my garage before Xmas to convert into a model railway and model-making man cave. Hernia soon scuppered all those plans!! Can only dream of how it will look like. Lol. Happy New Year to you. Keep up the good work in 2020. John (based in Belfast)
This just sound like me, never having a place to call the layout room. Old layouts having to be cut up due to moves of one type or another. Here’s hoping in 2020 I can finally get to it.
Lot of luck to you.
Oh no, what an upheaval!! But as you said it’s a chance to correct all the niggling faults we discover after setting up our ‘perfect never to be moved dream ‘ I for one look forward to your updates and piccies (no pressure there then lol)
Thanks Jenny, more updates and pictures 🙂 coming soon. Andy